Drawing of Dudley Fire Disaster Shop

This drawing has just emerged, showing the premises of Dudley boot-maker Joseph Russell. The shop was the scene of a fatal fire, more details can be found  in the book 'Tales of Old Dudley - A Catalogue of Crime, Accident & Misfortune'.

The book is also available at Saturday Books, Tower Street, Dudley.

Fascinating Story Now Available As eBook

The remarkable life story of one man from the Victorian era may have remained shrouded in mystery forever, were it not for our research. James Fairweather published an anonymous account of a decade or so of his life but intense detective work in more than one country enabled us to discover his identity and reveal his entire life story.

His amazing tale is recounted in our book 'The Rise, Fall and Redemption of James Fairweather' which is also now available as an eBook. The first half of Fairweather's life was spent in and around Dundee and our eBook has proven very popular with people interested in that city and especially the history of Broughty Ferry.

This attractive suburb has its own Facebook page which is well worth a visit. Contrasting the images of that place with the grim exterior of Woking invalid prison, where James Fairweather spend around a decade, will give a hint of the transformation his life underwent.

Annual Local History Day

Due to prior commitments we were unable to attend Tipton Library's annual Local History Day although 'Tales of Old Dudley' was featured on posters and leaflets at the event.

Book Featured in County Newspaper

We're a little late to the party in spotting this one, but the Malvern Gazette has also recently reviewed 'Tales of Old Dudley'.

The connection may seem obscure to some, but though Dudley is now just a part of the Black Country conurbation, in the past it was one of Worcestershire's major towns and still has an affinity with many places in the shire.

Great Malvern, surrounded by rather more greenery than Dudley!

Dudley Book Available For Research

For those interested in using 'Tales of Old Dudley' for their own research, it is now available on the shelves of Dudley Archives.

Housed in an ultra-modern building, the Archives is located beside the Black Country Living Museum. The building is also home to the offices of the famous 'Black Country Bugle' weekly newspaper.



More details can be found on their Facebook page.

Penkridge Title Now Available As eBook

'Crime & Chaos in Victorian Penkridge' has just been made available on Amazon as an eBook - Kindle users can find the product page here.


The title is also now available for iPhone, iPad and Mac via the iBookstore - point your device to this page.

Book description:


This collection of stories from nineteenth century Penkridge covers a diverse range of events, from drunken brawls to burglary, drownings, railway accidents, child neglect and animal cruelty. It includes surprising revelations about poverty and neglect in the village, tragic loss of life and a number of gruesome and unexplained deaths.

Read about the activities of the village fire-fighters and policemen, and how the local courts and workhouse dealt with those who wouldn't obey the law or couldn't look after themselves. Meet brazen fraudsters, runaway husbands, feuding families and the foul-mouthed fighting women of Penkridge past!


Map: CC BY-SA licence released historical digital boundary and map data from the Great Britain Historic GIS Project, University of Portsmouth.

"This work is based on data provided through www.VisionofBritain.org.uk and uses historical material which is copyright of the Great Britain Historical GIS Project and the University of Portsmouth".